Jason woke to the familiar hum of his bedroom fan, the sound oddly grounding after the chaos of the last 24 hours. The shadows on the ceiling stretched long and calm, but he didn't trust them—not anymore.
He sat up, muscles sore. He half-expected to be back in that concrete room with the flickering fluorescent lights, Isaac's team standing by with tranquilizers or worse.
But no. He was home.
Somehow, they had let him come back.
The floor was cool under his bare feet. He shuffled toward the window and tugged the blinds.
There it was.
A sleek, black car idled on the opposite side of the street. No one stepped out. No one ever did. But it had been there since last night. Watching.
He didn't need anyone to tell him—it was Public Safety.
They were giving him freedom, sure, but with a leash.
Jason pulled the curtain shut and backed away. For a second, he stared at his hands, flexing his fingers.
They looked the same.
But they didn't feel like his anymore.
⸻
Renji picked him up just after noon.
"Nice pajamas," Renji said as Jason slid into the passenger seat. "Didn't think you'd still be alive by now. But hey—cheers to low expectations."
Jason gave him a flat look. "You always this charming, or just with new recruits?"
Renji grinned as he pulled into traffic. "Only the ones who nearly rip my squad apart in the first five minutes of knowing them."
Jason stared out the window, unsure whether to feel guilty or proud.
Renji's car was a brand new Toyota. Inside smelled like menthols and cheap air freshener. Jason spotted fast-food wrappers crammed in the console and a pair of sunglasses wedged under the dashboard.
"So…" Jason started slowly. "What happens now?"
"We start with orientation," Renji said. "Try not to die."
Jason blinked. "That's it?"
"Well, also—don't lose control, don't try to run, don't touch anything glowing red, and definitely don't make eye contact with Isaac again unless you want your brain to melt."
Jason flinched slightly at the name. "That thing he did to me… I've never seen anything like it."
Renji chuckled. "No one has. Not really. Isaac's a freak—but effective."
Jason hesitated. "What was it? Those images, those thoughts… I couldn't breathe. I couldn't even think."
Renji glanced at him, smirking. "Isaac's contract. With the Nightmare Devil. Scariest bastard you'll never see."
Jason stiffened. "Nightmare Devil?"
"Yeah. Makes sense, right? Fear of nightmares is one of the oldest human fears. So the devil born from it? Strong. Real strong." Renji tapped the steering wheel. "Isaac makes eye contact—bam. Whatever he's thinking, you see. And believe me, Isaac thinks about some dark shit."
Jason swallowed hard. He remembered the terror. The screams in his head. The blood. The hallucinations that felt too real to forget.
"So he just… thinks something and you see it?"
"Exactly. Doesn't have to say a word. And it doesn't matter how strong you are—if he gets the jump on you, you're toast." Renji looked sideways. "Only reason you didn't die? You weren't fully gone yet. You were on the edge—but you still had a foot in the human door."
Jason leaned back in his seat, quiet. The road blurred past them. None of this felt real.
"Am I… still possessed?" he asked softly.
"Kinda," Renji said. "Whatever was inside you? Left a scar. That devils aura's stitched into your soul Like radiation. Jason frowned. "Then how do I get rid of it?"
"You don't," Renji replied bluntly. "But you learn to control it. That's what today's for."
⸻
Public Safety's HQ was tucked into an old courthouse on the east end of the city. From the outside, it looked abandoned—boarded windows, cracked stone steps, ivy curling up its pillars. But once Renji flashed a badge at the side door, everything changed.
The interior was alive.
White halls, reinforced doors, people in tactical uniforms moving with quiet purpose. Screens mounted on the walls showed live devil readings across the region. Somewhere nearby, someone screamed—followed by a buzz and a mechanical hiss.
Jason followed Renji closely, trying not to stare too long at the strange weapons and jars they passed. One case held a writhing black hand, still twitching in brine. Another displayed a mask with human teeth fused to its metal surface.
"Welcome to the freak show," Renji said, gesturing wide. "This is home base for our region. Everyone here either kills devils, studies them, or gets killed by them."
Jason's throat was dry again.
"And this…" Renji stopped at a glass wall overlooking a training room below. "…is where we separate the cursed from the possessed."
Jason watched as two fighters clashed—one with glowing tattoos up his arms, the other wielding a massive serrated blade that vibrated unnaturally.
"What am I?" Jason asked quietly.
Renji didn't answer right away. He leaned on the railing, eyes distant.
"That depends," he said eventually. "You ever heard of the term Aura?"
Jason shook his head.
"Aura is just raw negative emotion. Pain, anger, fear—it's all aura. Some people can channel it, shape it, weaponize it. We call them Cursed Users."
"Like that girl down there?"
Renji nodded. "Exactly. She was born with the gift.Most normal people can't even see aura, so it really is rare."
Jason frowned. "So if someone can't channel their aura then what…?"
"They make contracts with devils," Renji said. "Like Isaac. Like some of the people you saw last night. Devils offer power in exchange for something. A price. A bond."
"What kind of price?"
Renji raised an eyebrow. "Depends on the devil. The Nightmare Devil takes fragments of sanity. The Hunger Devil asks for fasts."
Jason looked down at his own hands again.
"What did I give?" he whispered.
Renji turned toward him, more serious now. "We don't know. That's what's scary. You didn't make a contract. You were possessed. But somehow, you woke up. That's not supposed to happen."
Jason said nothing.
Renji slapped him on the shoulder. "You're a freak, Ramirez. But maybe that's a good thing."
⸻
They passed several more rooms—labs with devil cores under microscopes, shrines sealed in salt circles, a recovery bay where someone in restraints snarled at the ceiling in a voice that wasn't human.
Eventually, Renji stopped in front of a sleek training room with padded floors, mirrored walls, and high ceilings. Inside stood a girl—maybe Jason's age, maybe younger. Tall, sharp features, with jet-black hair tied in a high ponytail. She wore the Public Safety uniform like it was a designer outfit and didn't look up when the door opened.
"She's new too," Renji said. "But you should be wary of her.Both her dad and grandpa are currently part of the public safety head of operations, she think she's hot shit...bleh." Renji said it a disgusted tone.
"What's her name?"
"Ely. She's also a cursed user."
Renji rolled his eyes. "Alright let's introduce yall to eachother"
They stepped inside.
Ely turned slowly, unimpressed eyes landing on Jason.
"This him?" she said.
Renji grinned. "The infamous S-Rank disaster in the flesh."
Jason gave a small wave.
Ely crossed her arms. "He doesn't look like much."
Jason bristled. "You always greet people like that?"
"Only the ones who nearly go on a killing spree."
Jason blinked. "Wait—you were there?"
"No. But I've seen the footage. You're lucky Isaac didn't melt your brain."
Jason felt a heat rise in his chest but swallowed it down.
Renji stepped between them. "Alright, alright. Save the bickering for the sparring room."
Ely smirked. "I don't spar with liabilities."
She turned and walked off.
Jason watched her go. "She's a delight."
Renji laughed. "You'll get used to her. Or not.""She's also not a fan of keeping devils alive."
He looked at Jason again, more serious now.
"This is your chance to prove you can exist in this world without becoming a threat. Stay close. Keep your cool. Learn everything you can. And remember—"
His voice lowered.
"Emotions fuel devils. If you let yourself feel too much… it's not just your life on the line. It's everyone around you."
Jason nodded slowly.
Renji opened the door to the hall. "Let's go. We've got a lot of ground to cover."
Jason stepped out into the corridor, feeling the weight of the building settle over him. He didn't know what he was anymore.
But he knew this:
He had to find out—before whatever was inside him woke up again.
⸻
To Be Continued.